


Making Goals

by orphan_account



Category: Glee
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-17
Updated: 2019-09-17
Packaged: 2020-10-20 16:43:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20678612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When Santana Lopez sustains an injury during a crucial soccer match it puts her on suspension at McKinley University. With soccer being an influential part of her life, it's difficult to make do... So, when the infamous Carmel College comes knocking on her door begging for her talent, she finds herself playing for the enemy.





	1. Chapter 1

A full soccer stadium roared to life. Cameras flashed, people applauded, and sometimes a shirt or two lift by means of showing the spectators just what team was being rooted for and by whom. It was beautiful, intense, and euphoric to a young and enigmatic Santana Lopez.

It was her Sophomore year at McKinley University, and it was the game that would make or break it all. Semifinals.

For being a sophomore, it was an honor and privilege to be the Forward on a championship-winning, big-league team. (Sure it wasn't the Olympics, but for Lopez it was close enough.)

The score was 3-4, and the ball was located just outside of the opposing team’s goal.

Carmel College.

They were a tough team to beat.

The goalie; tough-skinned and lean in stature, was proving to be the most dangerous in terms of their victory. He blocked everything that came his way... But Lopez was hoping to change that.

The young man, Blaine as she would later learn, gripped the dirtied and wet soccer ball with tan hands, shifting it slightly in his grasp. With very little twirl of the ball, a stream of water droplets flew off and landed into the damp grass below. It was all so... eerie and intense. Not at all like the usual games.

Water droplets fell from Santana's dark bangs, obscuring her view for just a moment before everything shifted back into focus. Blaine, clad in a sticky red uniform, hoisted the ball above his head and looked all of his team members straight on. Although his stare scraped by them all, Santana Lopez could feel it linger on her for just a split-second more than the rest.

This ball was hers.

This goal was hers.

This game was hers.

… And then it came.

And she slipped.

Flashes of white shrouded her vision as the crowd around her erupted in a mass collection of distorted and diverse noises. Some booed, some gasped, and few cheered. However all of that went away when Santana looked down and saw something she thought she'd never see: her leg, twisted and mangled under the weight of her hip. She couldn't even feel the cool grass beneath; just a series of hot, flashing pains.

Then everything went dark.

* * *

A lone hand clenched itself tight, "you can't be serious. This is bullshit!"

Mr. Figgins, in all of his balding glory, entwined his fingers and leaned back into his plush leather chair. He was anything but amused by Santana's choice of words, but carried on nonetheless. "We're sorry Ms. Lopez. Our board of trustees has come to the unanimous decision that it isn't in your best interest to continue."

Santana grit her teeth, "to hell with the board. _ I feel fine _. That's all that should matter."

"If it's any consolation, your scholarship will remain intact-"

"I'm sorry, but to be quite honest I don't give a damn about the money. **I came here to play ** ** _soccer_ **."

"I know it's the last thing you want to hear, Ms. Lopez, but there's more to college than soccer."

This sentence stopped the existence of Santana Lopez immediately. Her breathing slowed, and her eyes hallowed as she looked upon her previous role model. "I'm sorry," she started, "I need some time to think."

Picking up both aluminum crutches in one quick sweep, Santana stood with practice. The cool metal burned her skin, trapping her in a weak and frail state.

It was all a load of shit.

"Please, recuperate wholly Ms. Lopez. If anything goes amiss, you're suspension will be extended, I'm sure."

Santana huffed. "You're acting like you don't have a say in the matter."

* * *

A gentle knock sounded before the wooden door to Sue Sylvester’s office creaked open.

"Ah! Bimbo." The hardened coach squinted and focused on the familiar face of one of her dumbest players. "How can I help you?"

Brittany Pierce gently inserted herself into the dimly-lit interior of her Coach's office. Her hair shifted and swayed as the variance of temperature created an unforeseen draft. Across from her sat Sue Sylvester of Carmel College; her face hardly visible due to her “preference for darkness”. It scared upperclassmen away with ease, she once stated. At first the dark room and negative behavior of Sue Sylvester had worried her, but over the years she had grown fond of the powerful woman. "Coach Sylvester, I’m wondering if you got my email? About my ideas."

"Yes, I remember taking all day to read it." She paused to lean forward, "I still haven’t even finished it, actually. Tell me, how did you even manage to send an email in Crayon? It must have taken you ages to figure out how the scanner worked."

Brittany ignored Sylvester, "Santana Lopez."

The Coach pursed her lips, pressing her forward.

"I think you should ask her to join us at Carmel." The blonde’s light tone helped her come off as trustworthy.

Coach Sylvester turned serious, turning this proposition over in her mind. "And why should I, or "we" if I include the school board, consider this?"

"She's desperate for another game. And she kicked our butts last fall, so I think she'd make a good addition to our team." She put it simply, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh?" At some point during Brittany's explanation Sue had put her glasses on, as if to help her see and study the blonde.

"Her game statistics are amazing. From her freshman year at McKinley until now, she has raked in more profit than anyone else we've had at Carmel." A beat. "Including me. And with her suspension and her desire to continue playing, now is as good a chance as ever to convert her over."

"Ah, that’s right. She was suspended for concern of her health. What do we plan to do about that?"

"We don't know everything about her suspension, but it's safe to say that her injuries will keep her out of McKinley fields for over a year... If we were to transfer her here by next semester, after her injuries have healed to the best of _our_ knowledge, I'm sure that it would be safe for her to continue on our side come the season."

"... And what if you're wrong, and her injuries cause her to be a liability?"

"I'll accept responsibility."

Sue Sylvester smiled. "You're just a student, Brittany. I'm sorry, but you don’t have the authority to make that choice. As well as the ability to accept another student's sports career as a liability."

Brittany straightened her posture and pursed her lips. Her light chiffon blouse was suddenly making her feel vulnerable.

Still, Sylvester hesitated a moment before giving Brittany a sly smile. "... I'll see what I can do."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sue is the most OoC right now, and I apologize for that.  
(There's a reason.)

Santana gently opened the door to her apartment, mildly aggravated by the volume of a song drifting through the air.

Before her stood Brittany S. Pierce, clad in a black sports bra and a pair of matching athletic shorts. Her lips danced as she sang along to Foster The People’s _ Sit Next to Me _ . The volume of her voice hitched as the chorus approached, "loud and proud" as she organized some books upon a lone wood shelving unit. 

_ " _ _ Come over here sit next to me _

_ We can see where things go naturally _

_ Just say the word and I'll part the sea- _ _ "_

As Brittany turned, their eyes locked. She fell silent and quickly fumbled around for her phone, smashing the white pause icon on its glassy LCD screen. "Uh- sorry. I didn't hear you come in..."

"Can't hear much of anything with music that loud, I'm sure."

Oddly enough, Brittany seemed unfazed by the strangers brute comment. "Brittany Pierce, your new roommate" she introduced.

"I'm aware." Santana set her books down on her study-table. "Santana Lopez."

"Welcome to Carmel," she returned, not letting Santana’s snarkiness get to her. "Major?"

"As of right now, physics. Top of my class, top marks in the history of the program even..." Santana's dark eyes locked onto Brittany's piercing blue. "To maintain my average, I am going to ask that you refrain from providing an outside distraction. Or multiple. Whichever you feel more prone to offer."

Not liking the tone of her new roommate, Brittany crossed her arms and clicked her tongue. "Do me a favor and replace the stick that's up your ass with a lamp." Santana's eyes narrowed. "That way maybe you'll lighten up."

In all honesty, Santana wasn't angry. She was amused. Before any snark remarks could be fired from either one of their lips, Brittany's music started up again, louder this time.

"Oops," the blonde yelled over her tunes, "looks like I pushed a button." Santana's lips twitched. That was probably the biggest understatement she had ever heard.

* * *

"...She's our Coach?" Santana asked the squad of students she'd later call her team. The girls had been bad-mouthing someone she early noted as a physical fitness educator for freshmen. The woman was loud, brash, and astoundingly rude. Qualities she could admire, surely, but she herself was not someone she wanted to deal with at the moment.

"Play your cards right, maybe she'll choose you as Captain. Then you can spend every waking moment with her, planning every little thing for days on end. You think her shrill voice is annoying now... God, after ten minutes you'll want to crack your head open on a goal post."

"I'm guessing you were stuck in that position once?" One asked.

"Yep," a pop was added for emphasis, "...withdrew my reign as soon as the night ended."

"I regret many choices in my life," Tina, a classmate in Santana’s physics class sighed, "and joining this team is a big one."

At the side of the field Brittany and yet another lanky blonde sat, discussing their lovable Coach.

"Her glare could make a team forfeit in seconds," they drafted.

"...And her hair is dyed because she’s old," Brittany tried. The group fell silent, uncomfortable.

Then out of no where, Sylvester made an appearance at the front gates of the field, as if on cue. "Ching-Chang, Frodo, get over here and start passing."

The two girls did as they were told and rushed over to the far net, grabbed a soccer ball, and began prodding it around. All the while the rest of the team joined in under Sylvester's command, shuffling quickly in hopes of impressing one another. It was Varsity's first day and Santana was interested in seeing what "The Great Carmel" had to offer.

"We got it going, let's roll." Santana became focused and snappy as her comfort that she had lost in the transfer started to return. _Just another team. Just another set of girls. It's no different._ One by one the ball skipped down the field, expertly bouncing off the soles of each team member. "Don't be lazy with the passes, get them in. Nice and clean. Everything needs to be quick and sharp."

It took a few moments before Santana fell back into a rhythm. God, how she had missed this... the feeling of the wind blowing against her and a ball thoughtlessly thudding against her feet. She could almost hear the crowd around her roar to life- cheering her name, Ohio's Soccer Prodigy. She was the best player of her day and she knew it. She lived it. 

She had to.

* * *

The overcast sky brought a drop of temperature, and everything inside and out of Santana started to cool as their practice slowed.

"Brittany, do you think we could do a practice game?" One of the players, Sam, asked.

Brittany stopped with the ball as Quinn dove for it, accidentally sending her to the ground. The blonde woman let out a curse as she brushed off some lone strands of grass from her knees.

Santana cocked a brow, if only for a moment. 

"Coach?”

With a small purse of her lips Sylvester turned around towards a blue plastic bin. "We'll split apart. The good from the bad. It’s up to you to decide which is which..." As she popped off the top she began calling names off the shirts, respectively. "Pierce, Fabray, Hummel..." And one by one Brittany gave out this years team jerseys.

Being honest, Santana mentally reviewed and even highly approved of the original Carmel design. _ That _ was something Carmel High always had: Style. The red stripes of the jersey accented well against the crisp hexagonal pattern on the rest of the shirt. With a soft athletic netting atop the shoulders, the Jersey was easily made for comfort. As Santana turned the new article of clothing around, she was happy to see that her old number 4 (now decorated in white) was still in place.

"You lot are on offence," Sue concluded. As she marched towards the pile of soccer balls at the end of the field, no doubt to grab the best one, the rest of the team ran to the sidelines to grab their chance at a quick water break.

Santana was the first to break an awkward silence that enveloped the entirety of the team. "There sure are a lot of bald guys out here, huh? Carmel can't be trusted with hair or something?" Her voice dipped to a whisper, "Lice?"

"Last semester we found out that our teammate, Finn, had cancer. So, us guys shaved our heads for him in support," A burly player, nicknamed Puck, replied.

"Oh my god, Is he okay?" Brittany asked.

"...It's cancer."

A moment passed before Quinn spoke up, “Wait, Brittany, you were here.”

Puck tossed back the rest of his water bottle and turned to Santana. "Are you sure you're up for this? I personally think you'd be better off as a cheerleader."

Santana, now outfitted in the same jersey as the rest of her team, tossed Puck a searing glare. "Don't forget who kicked your ass in three games last year, Puck." Each word came out laced with venom. Even Brittany was worried for a moment.

Clicking his teeth and turning away, Puck figured it best to leave Santana alone... For the time being.

No more words were said until all players held their respective spots on the field. Without warning the ball came under the command of Santana. Her passes were quick, sure, and perfect... Proof that she was a legacy, no doubt. Her ailment affected her performance little to none, but nonetheless, everyone could sense that she'd be sore the next day. But in that moment, Santana didn't care. She was free again. Her heart soared as the ball soared into her goal.

She was back, baby.

"Santana. A word?"

Brittany gently passed Santana, pressing her hand against her shoulder before whispering a crisp "good luck".

In the distance the sun began to set, turning the field around them dark. It was nature's way of telling the team that practice was over. A few lights offered them solace under the dim sky.

After removing her gaze from Brittany, Santana let it settle upon the cruel blonde woman across from her. "Of course."

There was no dancing around the question. Santana didn't do that, she was always short and to the point. Admirable. "Would you like to be team captain?"

"It's my first day here. Are you sure that's something that you'd like?" Santana questioned.

"As much as I'd like to find someone else, because this whole team is utterly. And. Completely. Hopeless... you're the best candidate." Sue replied.

_ What is she playing at? _

Sue continued forward, taking Santana's silence as a concern. "You've been captain of the McKinley team since you were a freshman, and everyone knows you have plenty of knowledge to share. If it weren't for the accident last semester, you would have scraped by us and earned a shot in the championship." The woman didn't like admitting these things, but she knew she had to say whatever was necessary in this case. **Carmel needed Santana**.

Santana pursed her lips. Sue made a hard bargain. "As long as I get to call the shots, it's a deal."

"Just remember who's really in charge."

Santana crossed her arms and lifted her chin.

"See you around."

"Wait," the arms that she had so meticulously crossed flew outward, as if she could stop Sue with some simple movements. "Sue, wait-" Santana quickly began gathering all of the soccer balls that littered the field. "Sue- BRITTANY!" Maybe Brittany could help? No, she was long gone...

Pale features made an appearance once more.

"One of the many tasks of the Captain is post-practice clean-up."


End file.
